


The Price of Love

by messylochness



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Knight Kyungsoo, M/M, Prince Kim Jongin | Kai, Sad Ending, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:22:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26084896
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/messylochness/pseuds/messylochness
Summary: When the sun sets, the witch's curse turns a handsome prince into a dragon that his lover knight would fight all night long.
Relationships: Do Kyungsoo | D.O/Kim Jongin | Kai
Comments: 7
Kudos: 22
Collections: Challenge #6 — Rise of Kingdoms





	The Price of Love

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to my beta S for helping me with this fic, you're my saviour. Kudos to the mods for another amazing round, I really love this theme.

Kyungsoo's breath hitches as he leans behind the large tree trunk -- big enough to cover him out of his enemy's sight -- while gripping his right arm tightly as if it would ease the throbbing ache. The wound on his arm doesn't stop bleeding, it seems like the red dragon's claw pierced too deep into his skin and cut the flesh open. It's agonizingly painful. He clenches his stomach unconsciously, screaming internally since he needs to stay silent because the dragon may be able to locate him by hearing the smallest sound; even a whimper.

A cold sweat starts to drip from his forehead. He can't die like this. He promises that he won't die easily in this battle and he shall survive for at least a few more hours. The dawn will break soon and so does the curse, so he must do something to buy his time. 

Kyungsoo lowers his body while blindly grabbing for his sword. He accidentally dropped it somewhere around the big roots of the north forest since he carelessly used both arms to shield himself from the dragon's wrath. He grimaces when he feels a slight pang on the left side of his abdomen. It's the wound from the night before, when the dragon flicked the nearest garden cart towards the southern face of the prince's tower with his tail and it slammed right into his side. He pulls his shirt up. The ugly purplish bruise hasn't healed yet, and tonight's attack might make it worse. Kyungsoo tears his sleeves and uses them as makeshift bandages for his arms. He can hear a loud crackling from somewhere behind him, and the smell of freshly burned pine trees reaches his nose. The dragon must be furious that he's gone missing, but he can't face him in this condition.

Kyungsoo closes his eyes and a pleasant sight of Prince Jongin's ethereal beauty dances behind his eyelids. The sunlight forms a halo above his light brown hair when both of them climb at the top of the Prince's tower where the king held him captive. The soft, gentle caress of his fingertips upon his wounds when he carefully wraps it with a clean bandage. The faint whispers of apology for everything that he had to bear because they're madly in love. Love isn't supposed to hurt, that's what Prince Jongin said, although it's sounded so hypocritical since he is the one who makes Kyungsoo suffer the most. Kyungsoo doesn't regret everything that they had even if he has to fight the dragon every single night just to see his beloved princeling in the morning. 

The first crows of roosters is heard from afar, an early sign for a new day. Perhaps it belongs to one of the folks who lived below the mountain. He'd never noticed it before, maybe because he's been too busy maneuvering his way out of the dragon's reach. The serene, mythical north forest almost lulls Kyungsoo to sleep -- and it would have, had he not remained focused on his duty. Kyungsoo releases the breath that he doesn't realize he's been holding, eyes widening in fear when he realizes his stupid slip-up.

Loud cracking woods split in half, followed by ferocious roars coming nearer to him, faster than he expected. Kyungsoo ducks his head right in time before the tree he previously took shelter behind shatters right in front of his own eyes. Kyungsoo crawls from one big root to another, dragging his sore limb and keeping his weapon close. Just a few minutes more, he tells himself. The rough, hard, sleepless night will end soon and he will find himself in the arms of his sweet prince that will tend to his wounds and hum him a lullaby. Kyungsoo braces himself when he feels a scaled claw close in on the back of his neck.

Is this how he would die? He's one of the king's best swordsmen. Is he going to die by the hand of his loved prince?

"Kyungsoo." Kyungsoo opens his eyes when he hears it, the claws in his neck soon replaced by a gentle human hand. He could hear Jongin's loud gasps before he pulls him into his embrace. "No, no! What did I do? Can you move? Kyungsoo, answer me."

But Kyungsoo is slowly losing consciousness as he lays his head on Prince Jongin's shoulder, eyes shutting closed.

When Kyungsoo next opens his eyes, it's almost twilight. He realizes that his wounded arms are banded neatly and almost half of his upper body is covered with a greenish concoction that when he tries to rub it clean, his livid bruise is almost healed. His eyes roam and it doesn't take much time to recognize that he's in Prince Jongin's chamber. There's a cold bowl of porridge sitting at the nightstand, and a glass of water. Kyungsoo finishes the water in a couple of gulps, having not realized how parched he was until seeing something to drink. 

He hears soft knocks at the door. Jongin never bothers to knock usually, so he answers it right away. Seunggi, Jongin's butler, brings him a warm bowl of meat soup.

"Where's Jongin?" Kyungsoo asks him. The night has almost come and Jongin might be turning into the dragon again soon.

"I'm sorry Knight Kyungsoo…" Seunggi lowers his head. "But prince Jongin is gone."

"What do you mean?" Kyungsoo grabs Seunggi's collar tightly. 

"He's run away. He said he's sorry for what happened to you. I apologize for my carelessness, Knight Kyungsoo."

Kyungsoo feels like his whole world has stopped moving.


End file.
